Hawkins’ Family Garden

The 50 hectare (124 acres) Hawkins’ Family Garden extends beyond Mayfield, is breathtaking in its design and expanse. The Hawkins’ Family Garden consists of the following areas:

Main House Garden – this great Garden includes some design elements, such as the geometric features of the English Box Hedge Maze. The Mayfield Maze is one of the largest of its kind in Australia; the central crows nest is the goal – challenging for all ages! Climb to the top to ring the bell when you succeed in navigating the maze. The only catch is; You have to make it to the exit. The Parterre is a large symmetrical planting also lined with a low English Box hedge, with clouds of Summer flowering French Lavender. The perfume from the flowering lavender is intoxicating in Summer.

Other features include;

• A cut flower garden with Dahlias, Zinnias, Poppies, Delphiniums, Lilies, Hollyhocks, Lupins to name a few.
• A sculptured wavy Thuja spp hedge
• Espaliered Camellia sasanqua and Manchurian Pear
• A stumpery amongst a pine forest with an understory of Rhododendrons and ferns
• Fastigiate Oak lined driveway
• A chicken house is affectionately locally known as “The Chook Hilton”, with a copper roof, gutters, and louvred windows to protect the spoilt chickens. Their eggs are served down at the Mayfield Café. The Main House Garden includes numerous edible garden areas which include;
  • A fruit orchard consisting of apple, pear, fig, quince, mulberry and stone fruit plantings
  • A Nuttery consisting of walnuts, hazelnuts, chestnuts and almonds
  • A Gravenstein apple arbour
  • A brick-walled seasonal vegetable garden with espalier pears and figs. The brick wall is designed to be a heat bank and offers protection for the plantings. This extends the growing season and protects the plants in cold weather.
  • A glasshouse with potted citrus and a collection of Cymbidium orchards.

Formal Garden

• Rose Garden with Old World, Hybrid Tea, David Austin and Carpet Roses comprising a kaleidoscope of colour and featuring a Crepuscule Noisette peach coloured rose, which frames a series of constructed chain windows with a view of the landscape.
• The arbour of scented lilac to white coloured flowering wisteria leads to a Croquet Court of Bent Grass, enveloped by a brick wall covered on both sides with climbing Hydrangea Petiolaris. A parterre of English Box Hedge surrounds the dense planting of Rosemary, an Islamic-influenced pond, and the Italian Pencil Pine (Cupressus sempervirens Nitschke’s needle).
• The Heath and Heather Garden consists of a collection of Erica and Calluna species planted around architecturally shaped conifer species of contrasting texture, shape and colour.
• The Rhododendron Dell includes a large collection of Rhododendron species.

Creek & Lake Garden Beds

• The Creek Garden Beds are accessed by grass pathways. The gardens are informal and are positioned on either side of a natural creek, under an Oak canopy, and with a planting of a shrub layer of Philadephus, Lilac, Hydrangea, Cotinus and Exchorda, and ground covering Euphorbia.
• The Lake and Boardwalk garden beds are mass planted with a variety of Rhododendron and Mollis Azaleas.
• The Garden Rooms are lush and charming garden areas overlooking Mayfield Lake (where you can make use of free row boats during our festival periods). A colourful deciduous foliage canopy is designed to provide dappled light in all seasons with a selection of understory shrubs such as Pieris, Rhododendron, Hydrangea, Daphne and a variety of Magnolias.

While the 16-hectare Mayfield Garden is an all season garden and we are open 363 days of the year (closed 25 and 26 December). The Hawkins family opens their private garden to visitors every season, during the following festival periods.